Surrounded On Sundays - 5.1/quad reviews and summaries

That would be cool, and I would buy them again!

 

I've ordered it - I'll put a review up on the video thread when I get it. Seems like the people who have it already are in the UK.

 

Yea I ordered it too.
I think I've got all the others and the Wilson mix and Epping Forest make this too hard to resist.

 

That would be nice but SW has said that he's not a fan of early Genesis and he prefers to work with music he likes so he's not interested. Bummer, I know.

 

Well perhaps he likes Selling England.... that'll do

 

Despite not being into early Genesis, he's said in the past that he likes Hackett and Gabriel's solo work. I would love to hear an SW 5.1 mix of So.

 

I, II, III, IV and So .... although I'm not sure if the multitracks exist

 

The 5.1 mixes on the Play video compilation DVD are proof that at least some of the multis exist. I like those mixes for the most part, but a few of the songs ("Sledgehammer" and "Big Time" in particular) sound really different than the original stereo versions.

 

I wonder how much of the original III was mixed on the fly, because Games Without Frontiers sounds almost like a completely different song.
But yes, the Play mixes are good

 

Beatles - Love. I guess I'm just not enough of Beatles purist to care that most of the material on here is different that the original versions. I don't especially appreciate the medleys that have little bits of songs strung together, but those prevent from enjoying the rest of it. Quite simply, except for the three albums issued in pricey boxes, this is the best source of Beatles surround for all the three albums issued in pricey boxes. I think some of the more recent bluray versions Beatles movies borrowed material from Love. (3/3)

King Crimson - Larks' Tongue in Aspic. This was one of the first three KC albums I ever had, possibly even the first (ITCOTCK and S&BB being the other two). I didn't particularly like it at first, but it was so mesmerizing I kept listening to it. In any case, it's a great start by my favorite KC lineup. It's even more mesmerizing with a fantastic surround mix. Wilson had really honed his craft by this point. He does use the center channel to feature other instruments besides just vocals - the Talking Drum in particular is worth mentioning. Fripp's guitar work is mostly in the rear, which is pretty awesome. (3/3)

Police, The - Every Breath You Take. Oh dear, what is this clunker doing among all these other really great surround discs? I have the SACD sans video, so you might think the audio would be better, but I guess not. The first two tracks from the first album don't have surround at all - no multitracks I guess. I like the tracks from Reggatta de Blanc the best - the instrumentation is simple with guitar and some backing vocals in the rear. Seems like the later albums would be even better, but they're not - very front heavy for the most part. "King of Pain" to use the rears to any significant advantage. Great collection of songs though. (3/2) - and the 2 is a little generous..

Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food. I've already said that when I reach for one of the first three Talking Heads albums, it's usually Fear of Music. The first two albums are both really good too, but Fear is the best exemplar of their early style. Still some great songs on here - "Take Me to an Angel", "Warning Sign", "Found a Job", "Artists Only" and "Take Me to the River" And there's no doubt it's better in surround. The percussion on "With Our Love" and "Stay Hungry" presages bongos in the back on Remain in Light and Speaking in Tongues, and "Take Me to a River" is a surround classic. (2/3)

My Santana quad disc is on the way. Quad fest on tap. I have already listened to The Captain and Me quad and it's awesome.

 

Of the early albums, that's the least interesting, imo. Security is the album that ought to truly take advantage of Surround. But as someone else said, if we got the first five albums I'd be happy.

Today I played an old favorite of mine. It was new to me in Surround, and if it ever exemplifies that listening in Surround can allow you to hear things you've never heard before.....

Randy Newman's Little Criminals is a phenomenal album. It sounds a little strange in surround, and the mood is somewhat lighter somehow. Fascinating.

 

It's a great album. I'm so pleased they did the 5.1, because it prompted me to buy my first Randy Newman album.

 

I really enjoy the Little Criminals DVD-A as well. George Massenburg's 5.1 mix is particularly effective on "Short People" and "Riders In The Rain", where you can hear The Eagles' backing vocals isolated in the rear channels. I'd also recommend his 5.1's of Lyle Lovett's Joshua Judges Ruth and Mary Chapin Carpenter's Time Sex Love - very similar approach with the lead vocals in the center channel, different instruments spread around the room, etc.

 

I might have to check them out

 

I just bought G N R Appetite For Destruction super deluxe 4 CD's and 1 Blu-ray 5:1 multi channel mix. I paid 60 dollars for a sealed copy.

Has anyone hear listened to the 5:1 mix and, if so, what were your impressions?

 

On the previous page you'll find a thread guide. Look up Guns And Roses, I believe someone else also put their opinion up shortly after the review, and I believe both were positive

 

The German language mix of that album is also wildly different from the English one. I prefer it actually.

 

I wonder which Peter himself preferred.

 

Interesting one for me. I was over-the-moon when it first came out--Elliot Scheiner is my favorite surround mixer and Appetite For Destruction is one of my favorite rock albums, so it seemed like a match made in heaven--but I’ve come to dislike the 5.1 mix more-and-more on repeat listens. It’s funny how your opinion can change on these things after the hype/anticipation dies down. I’ll probably get slammed for this, but here goes...

The biggest issue with it for me is the tonality. I get that this music is supposed to sound visceral and in-your-face, but it feels like there’s a massive treble boost on the Blu-Ray that didn’t exist on the original CD. The hi-hat/cymbals in the 5.1 mix are so forward and bright that they often seem to overpower some of the vocal and guitar parts! I can blast the original CD at high volume, but my ears start to feel it halfway through the Blu-Ray.

With regards to use of the surround field, the 5.1 mix feels a bit inconsistent overall - likely because some tracks have more layered arrangements than others. Scheiner elected to keep the core bass/drums/guitars/lead vocal in the front channels, so the rear channels are basically left empty until some kind of overdub (guitar solo, doubled vocal, percussion, etc) enters. Some of the extra little details that pop up back there took me by surprise though! Towards the beginning of "Paradise City", you can hear a synth in the left rear doubling the guitar melody and a whistle-like sound effect.

There's also some instrument balance issues on the 5.1 that really bug me. One of my favorite things about the original mix is how you can always hear the interplay between Slash and Izzy’s guitars, panned hard left & right in stereo. In the 5.1 mix, the balance between the two guitars is inconsistent to the point where it feels like one of them is barely audible. For example, check out the intro section in “Welcome To The Jungle”: the signature riff panned to the right rear channel feels much louder than before, while the other two guitar parts in the front channels--which were very prominent in stereo--are like ghosts in the mix. Same thing with the backing vocals in “Out Ta Get Me” (“they won’t touch me”, “you can’t tell me”): I like hearing them come from behind me, but they seem veiled and much quieter than the lead vocal in the front channels.

All that being said, this is still one of the most adventurous surround mixes that I've heard of an album in this genre. I was really looking forward to hearing “Sweet Child” in 5.1 and Scheiner's mix doesn't disappoint on that track: the iconic opening riff and "where do we go now" backing vocals are squarely in the rear channels. “Patience” is another highlight, but “Welcome To The Jungle” was a huge disappointment for me. Aside from the intro and breakdown sections, there’s barely anything in the rear channels except for the backing vocals and a guitar overdub during the chorus.

I keep thinking it’s somehow down to my system (though I’ve listened on three different 5.1 systems including my car), or maybe the old stereo mix is just too burned into my brain. Either way, my last few listens to the Blu-Ray were overall kind of disappointing with a few bright spots. Hopefully your experience will be better!

 

The Joshua Judges Ruth (DTS 5.1) is a great album with a very nice surround mix. The recording and fidelity on the album are top shelf, with excellent song writing. It all makes for a very pleasurable listening experience.

 

Thanks I hope to get it soon. Btw, I saw that Queen's ANATO got a good write up as well. I have about 50 + multi channel mixes and ANATO is my favorite in terms of the surround mix. It takes surround to where it should be in order to be called "surround". Many surround mixes sound close to the original stereo mix or just slightly different. If you pay for a 5:1 surround mix it should have distinct separation of instruments throughout all of the songs.

 

Big Pink Floyd fan. I have the DSOTM surround which is ok not great. Maybe there is another mix of it that is better?

I have Wish You Were Here Immersion and Analogue Productions release of the same album. Both mixes are ok, nothing blew me away. The Immersion 5:1 sounded better then AP's mix.

My favorite Floyd song is Echoes. Their is a quad mix on the Reverberation box set but looks like the rest of the set is nothing special and the rest of the Meddle album is not quad mixed (not even the rest of Meddle is included). Why cant they just make a Mettle Immersion box? Anyway should I spend 40 bucks just to hear Echoes in quad?

 

You can look on ebay and such, and see if you can get the 5.1 mix of Meddle

 

The entire Meddle in 5:1 was "hidden" in the Early Years 400 dollar box set. There is no "standalone" release of Meddle Blu-Ray, DVD-A or SACD that I know of.

 

Yes, with the help of suggestions on the net I was able to extract it, and am now enjoying it in when I am in the mood. Be aware that the 5.1 Meddle was removed from the disc in the separate REVERBER/ATION box. You do need to get the complete Early Years to access it.